King James Bible Study – [Mark 8:34 And when he had called the people unto him with his disciples also, he said unto them, Whosoever will come after me, let him deny himself, and take up his cross, and follow me.]
Date: Wednesday, August 10, 2022
Chapters: JEREMIAH 10-13
Study: Before God Causes Darkness
Hello My Friend,
I had a hard time getting started this morning, which is why I knew that God had a good message for me to write. As I was reading the chapters for today, I was thinking about the different types of Christians that we have in this world. Those who are saved and faithful, those who are saved and ignorant to God’s Word, those who are saved and idle, and those who are saved and arrogantly living in their sin. Then we also have those who are unsaved, who call themselves Christians behind some religion or their own beliefs, but never fully accepted Christ as their Saviour. Then it occurred to me as I started typing this that God, has some issues with all of us. Granted, that unsaved soul is in the worst state than all of us, but we all would be wise to listen to what God is telling us.
[Romans 14:8-13 For whether we live, we live unto the Lord; and whether we die, we die unto the Lord: whether we live therefore, or die, we are the Lord’s. 9 For to this end Christ both died, and rose, and revived, that he might be Lord both of the dead and living. 10 But why dost thou judge thy brother? or why dost thou set at nought thy brother? for we shall all stand before the judgment seat of Christ. 11 For it is written, As I live, saith the Lord, every knee shall bow to me, and every tongue shall confess to God. 12 So then every one of us shall give account of himself to God. 13 Let us not therefore judge one another any more: but judge this rather, that no man put a stumblingblock or an occasion to fall in his brother’s way.]
Revival, starts with saved Christians who are living for Christ, not bickering and complaining about what everyone else is doing. And trust me, when God has something to say to you, He will say it without anyone else adding their two cents. God, is not at all telling us that we cannot teach His rights from our wrongs, but what He is telling us is that we are no never treat someone so badly that they would run from Christ rather than to Him. Also, if we are going to judge someone, the first person we need to look at is ourselves. There are so many Christians who think that they are doing things God’s way because they are good people. Well, guess what? What God sees as being good is not always what we see as being good, and this is exactly why our nations are becoming ruins. Take a lesson from what happened to Israel, and is still happening to them. As we continue in the reading God, continues to address His displeasure over Israel who turned from Him to these idols.
[Jeremiah 10:1-5 Hear ye the word which the LORD speaketh unto you, O house of Israel: 2 Thus saith the LORD, Learn not the way of the heathen, and be not dismayed at the signs of heaven; for the heathen are dismayed at them. 3 For the customs of the people are vain: for one cutteth a tree out of the forest, the work of the hands of the workman, with the axe. 4 They deck it with silver and with gold; they fasten it with nails and with hammers, that it move not. 5 They are upright as the palm tree, but speak not: they must needs be borne, because they cannot go. Be not afraid of them; for they cannot do evil, neither also is it in them to do good.]
[Be not afraid of them;] Did you know that there are some Christians who believe that God is describing a Christmas tree here? Idols, are man made objects that look quite frightening if you ask me, but have no power whatsoever. I remember a line from a movie that goes something like this, “Power is not in the curse, but in the power that you give the curse.” Idols, work the same way, the only power in idols would be perhaps what is coming from the mind that plays the part in giving that power to it. Well, if that is the case, then it may be the devil as he loves to try to convince both saved and lost Christians that he is God. Of course, he did try to overthrow God, so, I am pretty sure that he can transform himself into what looks like Christ.
[2 Corinthians 11:13-16 For such are false apostles, deceitful workers, transforming themselves into the apostles of Christ. 14 And no marvel; for Satan himself is transformed into an angel of light. 15 Therefore it is no great thing if his ministers also be transformed as the ministers of righteousness; whose end shall be according to their works. 16 I say again, Let no man think me a fool; if otherwise, yet as a fool receive me, that I may boast myself a little.]
When you see how evil and corrupt the world is getting you cannot help, but see their need for Jesus, I mean, they are looking to everything else, but God. Here is Israel, they have forgotten the Law, turned to every man made god and idol, but refuse to return to God, even though they know Him, and He has pleaded with them time and time again. Jeremiah pleads with them to hear what God is saying, and stop trusting in the false gods.
[Jeremiah 10:7-10 Who would not fear thee, O King of nations? for to thee doth it appertain: forasmuch as among all the wise men of the nations, and in all their kingdoms, there is none like unto thee. 8 But they are altogether brutish and foolish: the stock is a doctrine of vanities. 9 Silver spread into plates is brought from Tarshish, and gold from Uphaz, the work of the workman, and of the hands of the founder: blue and purple is their clothing: they are all the work of cunning men. 10 But the LORD is the true God, he is the living God, and an everlasting king: at his wrath the earth shall tremble, and the nations shall not be able to abide his indignation.]
[But the LORD is the true God,] This is what I think of as I read this, [Isaiah 40:28-29 Hast thou not known? hast thou not heard, that the everlasting God, the LORD, the Creator of the ends of the earth, fainteth not, neither is weary? there is no searching of his understanding. 29 He giveth power to the faint; and to them that have no might he increaseth strength.] Our greatest power does not come from our own abilities, talents, or strength, it comes from Christ Himself, who gives us His strength wen we are at our most weakest, [2 Corinthians 12:9-10 And he said unto me, My grace is sufficient for thee: for my strength is made perfect in weakness. Most gladly therefore will I rather glory in my infirmities, that the power of Christ may rest upon me. 10 Therefore I take pleasure in infirmities, in reproaches, in necessities, in persecutions, in distresses for Christ’s sake: for when I am weak, then am I strong.]
Perhaps the thing that angers God so much is not the lost who are deceived by these false witnesses, nor those who are ignorant to their devices, it is those who are deliberately deceiving people by teaching them to live wickedly, [Jeremiah 10:19-21 Woe is me for my hurt! my wound is grievous: but I said, Truly this is a grief, and I must bear it. 20 My tabernacle is spoiled, and all my cords are broken: my children are gone forth of me, and they are not: there is none to stretch forth my tent any more, and to set up my curtains. 21 For the pastors are become brutish, and have not sought the LORD: therefore they shall not prosper, and all their flocks shall be scattered.]
[and all their flocks shall be scattered.] This is the same reason why there are hundreds of different languages on the earth, God, confounds the speech of those who want to make up their own rules, [Genesis 11:6-9 And the LORD said, Behold, the people is one, and they have all one language; and this they begin to do: and now nothing will be restrained from them, which they have imagined to do. 7 Go to, let us go down, and there confound their language, that they may not understand one another’s speech. 8 So the LORD scattered them abroad from thence upon the face of all the earth: and they left off to build the city. 9 Therefore is the name of it called Babel; because the LORD did there confound the language of all the earth: and from thence did the LORD scatter them abroad upon the face of all the earth.]
God, will do whatever it takes to keep true believers from becoming corrupted by the so called believers and those who are trying to play God themselves. It is our words that will justify or condemn us because they are what come from the heart. When we proclaim Christ and tell of God’s judgment to come, the idle and the religious get angry, and they are going to fight us every chance they get. As Jeremiah was telling the people what God wanted them to know they did not like it and began conspiring to kill him as though that would have stopped it from happening.
[Jeremiah 11:9-11,15,17 And the LORD said unto me, A conspiracy is found among the men of Judah, and among the inhabitants of Jerusalem. 10 They are turned back to the iniquities of their forefathers, which refused to hear my words; and they went after other gods to serve them: the house of Israel and the house of Judah have broken my covenant which I made with their fathers. 11 Therefore thus saith the LORD, Behold, I will bring evil upon them, which they shall not be able to escape; and though they shall cry unto me, I will not hearken unto them. 15 What hath my beloved to do in mine house, seeing she hath wrought lewdness with many, and the holy flesh is passed from thee? when thou doest evil, then thou rejoicest. 17 For the LORD of hosts, that planted thee, hath pronounced evil against thee, for the evil of the house of Israel and of the house of Judah, which they have done against themselves to provoke me to anger in offering incense unto Baal.]
[which they have done against themselves] There is no one to blame for all the evils that befall them if they choose the sins of the world over their faith. Saved or not, [James 1:13-15 Let no man say when he is tempted, I am tempted of God: for God cannot be tempted with evil, neither tempteth he any man: 14 But every man is tempted, when he is drawn away of his own lust, and enticed. 15 Then when lust hath conceived, it bringeth forth sin: and sin, when it is finished, bringeth forth death.]
Well, the thought of these people trying to kill him, brought Jeremiah to ask God a question, in a matter of words, he wanted to know why the wicked prosper while the righteous are the ones suffering, [Jeremiah 12:1-4 Righteous art thou, O LORD, when I plead with thee: yet let me talk with thee of thy judgments: Wherefore doth the way of the wicked prosper? wherefore are all they happy that deal very treacherously? 2 Thou hast planted them, yea, they have taken root: they grow, yea, they bring forth fruit: thou art near in their mouth, and far from their reins. 3 But thou, O LORD, knowest me: thou hast seen me, and tried mine heart toward thee: pull them out like sheep for the slaughter, and prepare them for the day of slaughter. 4 How long shall the land mourn, and the herbs of every field wither, for the wickedness of them that dwell therein? the beasts are consumed, and the birds; because they said, He shall not see our last end.]
[and the herbs of every field wither,] We often wonder when all the suffering is going to end, especially as we see so many needed necessities becoming scarce as our nations leaders fall deeper and deeper into this pit that they are digging us into. That is when Jesus has to remind us, [Luke 12:23-24,28-31 The life is more than meat, and the body is more than raiment. 24 Consider the ravens: for they neither sow nor reap; which neither have storehouse nor barn; and God feedeth them: how much more are ye better than the fowls? 28 If then God so clothe the grass, which is to day in the field, and to morrow is cast into the oven; how much more will he clothe you, O ye of little faith? 29 And seek not ye what ye shall eat, or what ye shall drink, neither be ye of doubtful mind. 30 For all these things do the nations of the world seek after: and your Father knoweth that ye have need of these things. 31 But rather seek ye the kingdom of God; and all these things shall be added unto you.]
Sometimes it is hard to be a Christian, and I do not mean letting go of the temptations, I am talking about affliction and how we handle it. However, we need not fear them because Christ has our back, and while we may be brought to the slaughter, just as Jesus was, we will survive, which is exactly what God said when He answered Jeremiah’s question.
[Jeremiah 12:7,10-11,14-16 I have forsaken mine house, I have left mine heritage; I have given the dearly beloved of my soul into the hand of her enemies. 10 Many pastors have destroyed my vineyard, they have trodden my portion under foot, they have made my pleasant portion a desolate wilderness. 11 They have made it desolate, and being desolate it mourneth unto me; the whole land is made desolate, because no man layeth it to heart. 14 Thus saith the LORD against all mine evil neighbours, that touch the inheritance which I have caused my people Israel to inherit; Behold, I will pluck them out of their land, and pluck out the house of Judah from among them. 15 And it shall come to pass, after that I have plucked them out I will return, and have compassion on them, and will bring them again, every man to his heritage, and every man to his land. 16 And it shall come to pass, if they will diligently learn the ways of my people, to swear by my name, The LORD liveth; as they taught my people to swear by Baal; then shall they be built in the midst of my people.]
[and being desolate it mourneth unto me;] God, is the one who is in mourning over everything that is going on today. God knows exactly what is going on and knows each and every heart, even the saved that refuse to repent. You see, the judgments that God’s faithful face are not judgments at all, they are the worlds reactions to the news that their judgments are fatal. Christ’s people, both Jew and Gentile, have an inheritance awaiting them, one so grand that every single one of us who already left this earth, and are in heaven will resurrect as Jesus did to receive their new glorified and immortal body’s.
[1 Corinthians 15:50-52,56-57 Now this I say, brethren, that flesh and blood cannot inherit the kingdom of God; neither doth corruption inherit incorruption. 51 Behold, I shew you a mystery; We shall not all sleep, but we shall all be changed, 52 In a moment, in the twinkling of an eye, at the last trump: for the trumpet shall sound, and the dead shall be raised incorruptible, and we shall be changed. 56 The sting of death is sin; and the strength of sin is the law. 57 But thanks be to God, which giveth us the victory through our Lord Jesus Christ.]
There is this new billboard that showed up on a major highway, it says, “One God, one people, one race.” It is no doubt that some foolish group who believes that we should all coexist among each other no matter who they believe God to be was the one who put it up there. Since God is the Creator of all people, people make the false assumption that one could come to Him no matter the way. However, there is only one way to God and it has always been that way. Yes, God, is the Creator of all mankind and we are all one humane race, but we are not all one people for it is only God’s people who are one with Him. As God continues through Jeremiah, He reminds all that we all must come to the LORD before we all stumble in the darkness.
[Jeremiah 13:15-18 Hear ye, and give ear; be not proud: for the LORD hath spoken. 16 Give glory to the LORD your God, before he cause darkness, and before your feet stumble upon the dark mountains, and, while ye look for light, he turn it into the shadow of death, and make it gross darkness. 17 But if ye will not hear it, my soul shall weep in secret places for your pride; and mine eye shall weep sore, and run down with tears, because the LORD’S flock is carried away captive. 18 Say unto the king and to the queen, Humble yourselves, sit down: for your principalities shall come down, even the crown of your glory.]
[before he cause darkness,] God, has done it before, and He will do it again, silence His voice, and no one will hear the Gospel. Of all the people and beings (Satan and angels) in the world for that matter, God, has made it all good, it is the sinful nature of both Satan and man that leads to all the evil, and God goes on to explain why He allows it all, [Jeremiah 13:23-26 Can the Ethiopian change his skin, or the leopard his spots? then may ye also do good, that are accustomed to do evil. 24 Therefore will I scatter them as the stubble that passeth away by the wind of the wilderness. 25 This is thy lot, the portion of thy measures from me, saith the LORD; because thou hast forgotten me, and trusted in falsehood. 26 Therefore will I discover thy skirts upon thy face, that thy shame may appear.]
[Therefore will I discover thy skirts upon thy face,] Do you know what brings more conviction than telling someone that their sins will send them to hell? Exposing their sin. While we all have a little bit of evil in us, just like a leopard will always have spots, some people will always be evil. This is not something that God creates, it is something that He allows because He gives us all the freewill to choose how we live. Does He know they will choose the evil? Yes. And if they are going to choose the evil way, then He will still use that to His advantage. All I have to say is that I rather be on the winning side of this war because when He causes them to stumble, there will be no getting up, [Romans 9:22-23,26,33 What if God, willing to shew his wrath, and to make his power known, endured with much longsuffering the vessels of wrath fitted to destruction: 23 And that he might make known the riches of his glory on the vessels of mercy, which he had afore prepared unto glory, 26 And it shall come to pass, that in the place where it was said unto them, Ye are not my people; there shall they be called the children of the living God. 33 As it is written, Behold, I lay in Sion a stumblingstone and rock of offence: and whosoever believeth on him shall not be ashamed.]
Today’s Prayer: God, Help me to remain faithful to You and your calling upon my life. Strengthen and grow my faith as I daily search Your Scriptures and apply their truths to my spiritual walk. As I go through the trials and experiences of my earthly journey would You fix my eyes and my heart upon You. Search me, Lord, and if there is any evil in me, break me free from the bondage of it, and let everything I do being glory to You. Let me not forget Your truths or trust any falsehoods, only look to You in every area of my life. I ask this in Your name Jesus. Amen.
God Bless You, I am praying for you,
Christina
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